Why Does Mumble Look Different From The Other Penguins Novels & Stories

The day my wife gave birth to my foster brother's child, my entire family waited tensely outside the delivery room. They were not concerned about whether Sheila Rogers would make it through labor safely. They were worried I might turn up and make a scene. My mother kept glancing at the elevator. "He won't try to come up the stairs, will he?" My father was on the phone with hospital security again and again. "Yes, about six foot three. Have you seen him?" My brother stayed coiled and ready, fists clenched. "If my brother causes trouble, I'll lay down my life to protect Sheila and my son." However, from the start of labor to the moment Sheila delivered safely and both mother and child were declared healthy, I never showed up. Reclining on the hospital bed, Sheila took out her phone and asked my mother to call me. "Tell Hank not to cause any trouble," she said calmly. "If he's willing to be the child's godfather, we can still live our lives together." She felt absolutely no guilt toward me. From her perspective, she had merely granted my parents their long-standing wish for a grandchild. What fault could there possibly be in that? What no one knew was that I had never planned to go to the hospital. At that very moment, I was training beneath the scorching sun. All for a single reason: in one month, I would deploy with my unit to Safrana on a peacekeeping mission. Once I left, there would be little chance of ever coming back.

At the party, my son, Hughie Peters, deliberately raised his voice and said to my wife, Penelope Peters, "Mommy, you're pregnant with Darren's baby. Are we gonna live with him from now on?" Penelope set the sliced steak down in front of me and said softly, "I made a promise with your daddy. Whoever betrayed the other first would disappear from the other person's world forever. I can't afford for that to happen, so this must stay a secret. After the baby is born, it'll still be your daddy's child." After saying that, Penelope signed to me that she would love me forever. But she didn't notice my reddened eyes. She didn't know I had gotten my hearing back a week ago, nor did she know I had already discovered their affair. And she definitely didn't know I had quietly bought a plane ticket to Lumora for a teaching volunteer program. I was just waiting for the paperwork to be approved in seven days. Then, I would disappear for good.

I'm a surgeon who loses everything in one night. My hand. My baby. My name. I call the one man who always told me I was worth more, and I mean it this time. I disappear. I come back rebuilt, unrecognizable, and I do not rush. I took my time. And when I am finally done, every single person who destroyed me will be destroyed.

The day we submitted our college applications, the school beauty, Hayley Law, suggested we all go rafting to unwind. Every single person in class raised their hand in agreement. In my previous life, as the class monitor, I did everything I could to stop them. Wild rafting was far too dangerous. Without any safety measures in place, accidents could easily happen. In the end, everyone made it back safely and got into the colleges they wanted. But before the semester even started, news came that Hayley had gone rafting alone, slipped into the water, and drowned. When Terry Vargas, my boyfriend and the most popular guy in school, heard what happened, he took the lead in organizing a memorial at sea. Then, when the waves were at their worst, he shoved me into the ocean. Later, when the police questioned them, they all told the same story as if they had planned it. "Katrina insisted on a sea burial for Hayley. During the storm, she got swept away by the waves and disappeared." They even produced fake evidence to clear Terry's name. My parents were shattered. They went to Terry again and again, desperate for the truth, but he had them set up and locked away in a mental institution, where they were tormented to death. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day Hayley first suggested the rafting trip. I stood there quietly, watching my classmates pile into the bus she had rented, heading off to that same reckless trip. This time, I would just look out for myself.

This book is loosely based on a true story. ‘You will fall in love many times in your life. But the best one will be falling in love with your best friend.’ When Blaze's world falls apart, it's only natural that she turns to Fabien ‘Fab’ Lévy, an old roommate, for support. They had become close friends eight years ago while dancing for the same company. Seeing him turns her world upside down. He’s now sexier than before, and so perfect… But even so, she will never have sex with him! Well, never is such a definitive word… Maybe just once… One steamy night… and that’s it! Fabien has always loved Blaze Autumn Bergdahl, and always wanted her. But she always so him as her best friend. Life pushed them in different directions, and now, after eight years, she's on his Paris doorstep, needing a place to stay… She's just as hot, and as gorgeous as ever and Fabien wants her just as much. Is this their chance to be finally together? Is it possible for a man and a woman to be just… good friends even if one of them is totally in love? Can she throw away the best sex and the best friend she's ever had for a handful of illusions?

Leah Grant gave everything to Derek Johnson; a man she thought would heal her lonely heart. Blinded by love, she leaves her wealthy family to live an ordinary life, helping him rise to power, believing they were building a future together. But when Derek’s ex, Chantelle, re-enters his life, Leah is cast aside like she is nothing. Derek’s betrayal cuts deeper than she imagined. She discovers his lies, his secret plans for divorce, and the cruel truth: she was never his choice, only a means to an end. Heartbroken and humiliated, Leah walks away, leaving the marriage she sacrificed so much to save. Years later after Leah rebuilds her life, fate brings them back together and Derek is consumed by regret. Betrayed by Chantelle and haunted by the pain he caused, not only does Derek find himself feeling too attracted to her, he also discovers she has a four-year-old son who looks a lot like him. Now, he’ll stop at nothing to win her back—but Derek will soon find out the hard way. What happens when you betray a woman who has given everything up to be with you? Would Leah want him back? Or would Derek forever chase after his secret billionaire ex-wife?

One impetuous night gave them a gem and a lifetime of happiness. Izabelle had one-time sex with her crush, her cousin’s bestfriend after he was drugged. Later learning that she was pregnant, a misunderstanding flared where he believed that she had it all planned out. He agreed on taking responsibility but Izabelle’s desire was not to get into a loveless marriage and so she gathered her belongings and fled the country. Five years later, he saved a cute little bunny from child traffickers at the airport not knowing that the child was his. “You look like me, see? We have same eye colour,” the child pointed out. Then again, few minutes later when her Mother walked in, ‘Mommy, look I found daddy.” She raised her head to meet those icy familiar dark eyes. All Izabelle wanted was to keep her child away from Marcel but what about the sweet little thing holding onto his legs out of nowhere, batting her eyes at him and asking. “Will you be my daddy?”

I discover that I'm a homewrecker after dating my boyfriend for a decade. We're looking at marital homes when his wife seeks me out. She beats me up in public and rips my hair out, yet all he does is hurry to her after I've pushed her to the floor. Why? Because she's pregnant. Later, he gets a divorce and begs me to marry him. "I'm begging you, Madison. Forgive me this once."

Mary can see beings from the other side where most people don't. Her ability causes her to have a hard time growing up. She always thought that it was a gift to see the paranormal entities around us. But it turns out to be a curse since she can't live a normal life. Her only mistake is that she started talking to that spirit and even gave him a name. She called the ghost, Angel. The reason for that name is because he always keeps her safe. He always makes sure that there will be nobody who can hurt her. Until she saw his real face… Then, she will meet another interesting man, Gregory, who happens to be a vampire. He will save her from the hands of the angel of death who is pretending to be her friend. Gregory has to save her from Angel because she will make a perfect wife for a lonely vampire. Will Mary agree to the vampire's marriage proposal? Or will she choose to go back to the land of the living?

My brother, Dylan Skinner, was diagnosed with kidney failure and needed a transplant. My mother shoved a voluntary donation form in front of me and tried to force me to sign it, but I refused. I told her that my immune system was weak, and I wouldn't survive with only one kidney. She answered with two hard slaps across my face and started yelling. "Dylan is dying, and you're still thinking about yourself? How could you be so selfish?" To force me into it, she stormed into my advisor's office, grabbed my research samples, and said she wouldn't give them back unless I agreed. As I met her hate-filled gaze, something inside me went completely numb.